Ornaments



Dec. 22, 1970 J. B. SKELLEY, JR 3,549,465

ORNAMENTS Filed Nov. 29, 1 966 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR JOSEPH B. SKELLEY, JR.

Dec. 22 1970 J. B. SKELLEY, JR 3,549,465

ORNAMENTS '3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov 29, 1966 R o T N E V N JOSEPH B. SKELLEY, JR

United States Patent 3,549,465 ORNAMENTS Joseph E. Skelley, Jr., 1900 Belle Haven Road, Alexandria, Va. 22307 Filed Nov. 29, 1966, Ser. No. 597,639 Int. Q1. A47g 33/08 US. Cl. 16113 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE ribs.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in decorative or ornamental forms, and in particular the invention concerns itself with ornaments for Christmas trees, although its utility is not restricted to this particular environment.

As is well known, conventional Christmas tree ornaments usually are in the form of brightly colored, hollow bodies such as spheres and the like, made of very thin glass or plastic material and provided with a suspension hook so that they may be hung from tree branches. S uch conventional ornaments are purchased by the user 1n a ready-to-hang form, so apart from some choice in selection of different varieties, the purchaser is not afforded any opportunity to exercise creative efforts in the field of ornamentation. Moreover, the conventional ornaments are very brittle and easily broken, particularly when dropped, and they also are very bulky so that they must be carefully packed and occupy considerable space for storage after each use.

By comparison, the principal object of this invention is to provide an ornament which may be individually constructed or assembled by the user from a wide variety of selectively usable components so as to result in any one of a large number of different ornamental forms, this affording the user a facility to exercise personal skill, creative enterprise and selective ingenuity, all of which are reflected by the finished product. At the same time, a highly educational value is derived from the ornament constructing project, which makes it particularly suitable for small children and, in another sense, the project is well suited for adults as a form of occupational therapy.

Another object of the invention is to provide an ornament of the type above outlined which, with given instructions, may be quickly and easily assembled into a predetermined, selected form, as for example, by those who do not wish to avail themselves of the exercise of skill and creativity which is otherwise afforded by constructing the ornament in accordance with individually personal ideas.

Another object of the invention is to provide an orna- Patented Dec. 22, 1970 ment which, when assembled, is of durable construction so that it cannot easily become damaged, as for example, by accidental dropping off a tree branch.

Another object of the invention is to provide an ornament asembled from components which, after use, may be readily taken apart and compactly stored.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a variety of structural components which may be conveniently supplied to a purchaser or user in the nature of a kit, for selective assembly into a variety of different ornaments according to the users choice. As such, the components of the kit may, for a large part, include elements which are readily available at low cost on the open market, as for example, costume jewelry findings, beads, chains, and the like.

Also, while the invention is primarily concerned with ornaments which are adapted to be individually assembled from a variety of components, it is contemplated that such ornaments may possibly be formed integrally as a unit, as for example, by molding.

With the foregoing more important objects and features in view and such other objects and features as may become apparent as this specification proceeds, the invention will be understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters of reference are used to designate like parts, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a typical side elevational view, showing one example of an ornament constructed in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the ornament of FIG. 1 but with most of the ribs and all of the ornamental elements on the ribs omitted for sake of clarity;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary vertical sectional detail showing the connection of one of the ribs to one of the crown pieces;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the crown piece of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the crown piece;

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view showing a modified form of the crown piece and a portion of one of the ribs;

FIG. 7 is a bottom plan view, partly in section, of the crown piece of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a vertical sectional view showing another modified form of the crown piece and a portion of a modified rib;

FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view of the crown piece of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged, fragmentary perspective view of one end portion of the rib used in the embodiment of FIGS. 8 and 9;

FIG. 11 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical section, of a modified arrangement of crown pieces, center post and ribs;

FIG. 12 is a horizontal sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 12-12 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a fragmentary sectional view, taken substantially in the plane of the line 13-13 in FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary sectional detail showing one of the crown pieces of FIG. 11 equipped with a cap;

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary sectional detail, similar to that in FIGS. 11 and 14 but with a different connection of the ribs to the crown piece;

FIG. 16 is a view, partly in elevation and partly in vertical section, showing another modified embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 17 is a fragmentary sectional view of another modification;

FIG. 18 is a side elevational view of a solid rib;

FIG. 19 is an edge view of the rib in FIG. 18;

FIG. 20 is a side elevational view of another form of a solid rib; and

FIG. 21 is an edge view of the rib of FIG. 20.

Before describing the drawings in detail it should be noted that inasmuch as the invention utilizes a wide variety of selectively usable components, there is a virtually limitless variety of finished forms into which such components may be assembled. Any eifort to illustrate a substantial number of such forms would unduly burden the drawing disclosure as well as the description in this specification. Thus, the various embodiments to which the drawings have been limited are to be construed merely as representative of numerous different possibilities of construction, and in that context it should be understood that in the instance of a given embodiment shown in a given figure of the drawings, such an embodiment may possess a number of different structural features, only some of which may be specific to that embodiment while others may be generic to other embodiments shown in other figures of the drawings. As for example, the cap on the crown piece of FIG. 14 may be used with the rib arrangement of either FIG. 11 or FIG. 15, rather than exclusively with that of FIG. 11.

Referring now to the accompanying drawings in detail, attention is first directed to FIGS. l-S wherein FIG. 1 shows a typical example of an ornament 10 in accordance with the invention.

The ornament 10 is constructed from a number of selectively usable components, including a pair of crown pieces 11, center post means 12, a plurality of ribs 13, ornamental elements 14a, 14b, and a suspension hook 15. In its finished form the ornament has a substantially bulbous configuration with the crown pieces 11 located at the top and bottom thereof and the hook 15 applied to the upper crown piece so that the entire device may be conveniently suspended, as for example, from a tree branch.

The crown pieces 11 are disposed in what may be termed an exially spaced, opposing relation. Each crown piece is illustrated as having the form of a hollow cone, provided at its apex with an apertured ear 16 for selective reception of the suspension hook 15. The base wall of the crown piece cone is provided with a set of circumferentially spaced slots or openings 17, so that end portions of the ribs 13 may be assembled to the crown pieces as hereinafter described. The base wall of the cone is also provided with an integral eyelet 1 8 for connection of the crown piece to the center post means 12. The crown pieces 11 may conveniently be made of metal or plastic material.

The ribs 13 are preferably made as slender wire rods of resiliently flexible material, as for example, thin piano wire, the resilient character of the ribs producing a tendency for them to return to a straight form after curvature or bending. The end portions of the ribs are adapted to be inserted into the crown pieces 11 through the openings 17 so that in the finished form of the ornament the ribs are circumferentially spaced and disposed in radial planes relative to a vertical axis passing through the crown pieces.

The ornamental elements 14a, 141) may have various configurations and may be formed from materials such as glass, plastic, metal, et cetera. They may be either hollow or solid and provided with apertures or bores so that a plurality of them may be threaded in a row on each of the ribs 13, as will be apparent from FIGS. 1 and 3. As such, the elements 14a, 14b may be in the nature of beads, tubes, and the like, which are readily commercially available as costume jewelry findirigs. They may be of various sizes and colors, spherical or elongated, and .otherwise suitably characterized so as to aiford a very wide choice in their selection and assembly in threading upon the ribs 13. Manifestly, ditferent arrangements of the various elements 14a, 14b may be utilized on the several ribs, or all the ribs of the same ornament may have the same arrangement of the ornamental elements, as the creative efforts of the user may dictate. It will be also apparent that an ornament may have any suitable number of the circumferentially spaced ribs, although for simplicity of illustration only two diametrically opposite ribs have been shown in some figures of the drawings.

The length of the ribs '13 in relation to the axial spacing of the crown pieces 11 is such that in the assembly the ribs are curved in radial planes, thus producing the bulbous configuration of the ornament as already mentioned. However, since by their resilient nature the ribs have a tendency to return to a straight form, the center post means 12 is provided to prevent the crown pieces 11 from moving apart under the resilient action of the ribs. As shown in FIG. 2, the center post means 12 comprises two lengths of wire 19 hooked to a central ornamental element 20 such as a crystal of glass or plastic, and also hooked to the eyelets 18 of the crown pieces 11. Thus, since the length of the center post means is fixed, the crown pieces are prevented from moving apart and the curved form of the ribs '13 is sustained. Apart from serving as a component of the center post means, the element 20" enhances the ornamental effect, although it will be appreciated that the leement 20 may be omitted and a single length of wire extended between the crown pieces in place of the two wire lengths 19, 19. Also, a cord or some other slender element may be used for the center post, instead of wire.

During assembly, the crown pieces 11 are connected by the center post means 12, the ornamental elements 14a, 1412 are threaded on the ribs 13, and the end portions of the ribs are inserted into the crown pieces, thus resulting in the finished form as shown by way of an example in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate a modified embodiment of the crown pieces 11a which, in place of the aforementioned slots 17, are formed with internal grooves 2'1 having closed inner ends and open outer ends so that end portions of the ribs 13 may be inserted and seated in these grooves or sockets. This seating action positively sustains the ribs so that they are prevented from possible lateral displacement out of their true radial planes relative to the vertical axis of the ornament structure.

FIGS. 8-10 show another modified embodiment of the crown pieces 1111 which do not have a base wall but are provided at the inside thereof with a set of circumferentially spaced clips 22 for clampingly engaging flattened portions 23 formed adjacent the ends of the ribs 13a, as shown in FIG. 10. The ribs 13a may or may not be resilient, but even if they are, the engagement of the clips 22 with the flattened rib portions 23 positively prevents longitudinal displacement of the ribs relative to the crown pieces. Thus, this embodiment of the ornament is selfsustaining in form without requiring a center post means (such as '12) between the crown pieces.

At this point attention may be diverted to FIGS. 18-19 and 20-21 which illustrate different forms of ribs 13b and 130, respectively, such as may be used with the crown pieces 11b of FIGS. 8-9 instead of the wire ribs 13a. The ribs 13b, 130 are in the form of curved or curved and angulated straps of metal, plastic or other suitable material which is sufficiently rigid for the straps to be self-sustaining in their form, as distinguished from being resilient as in the instance of the wire ribs 13. The ribs 13b and 130 preferably have tapered end portions provided with the flattened regions 23 of engagement by the clips 22 of the crown pieces 1117, so that these ribs may also be assembled to the crown pieces without the use of a center post.

In the instance of the ribs 13b, ornamental elements in the form of costume jewelry stones 24 may be applied to the ribs by the user and held in place by suitable adhesive. On the other hand, the ribs 130 may be provided with surface ornamentation as indicate-d at 25, 26, in the manner of so-called Filigree or woven wire simulation often found in Mexican jewelry.

Reference is now drawn to the accompanying FIGS. 11-13 wherein a modified arrangement of the ornament structure is illustrated at 27. Here, the crown pieces 28 are in the form of simple discs, positioned on the end portions of a center post 29 which also carries one or more inter mediate spars, one such spar appearing at 30'. The ends of the center post are apertured as at 16a to receive a suspension hook (such as the hook 15) and the center post is preferably screw-threaded throughout its length to receive a plurality of nuts 31, whereby the spar 30 and the crown pieces 29 are held at fixed distances apart along the length of the center post, it being understood of course that these distances may be varied by adjustment of the nuts on the post. Also, the spar and the crown pieces themselves may be screw-threaded on the post, in which event the nuts 31 may serve as lock nuts.

In this embodiment of the invention the ribs of the ornament are constituted by lengths of cord 32, such as may have the ornamental elements 14a, 14b strung thereon. As shown in FIG. 11, a length of cord may be tied in a knot as at 33 to form a closed loop with the two side portions of the loop providing two ribs at opposite sides of the ornament, it being understood that several such loops are used in the same ornament to provide several pairs of ribs, depending on how many ribs the ornament is intended to have. In any event, the cord loop is seated in notches 34 formed in the peripheries of the crown pieces 28 and spar '30, whereby the several ribs are distributed in circumferential spacing around the ornament. It will be also observed that since the spar 30 is of a greater transverse dimension or diameter than the crown pieces 28, it sustains the intermediate portions of the ribs 32 radially further away from the center post than the ends of the ribs, thus producing a bulbous shape of the ornament. As already indicated, more than one of the spars 30 may be utilized, and they may be of the same or different diameters, so that the ribs 32 become angulated at different points along their length to vary the overall configuration of the ornament accordingly.

In the slight modification shown in FIG. 15, the crown pieces 28a are provided with simple apertures 35 rather than with open notches such as the notches 34, and the lengths of cord 32' are individual rather than in the form of a closed loop. The individual lengths of cord are passed through the apertures 34a and knotted as at 36 at each crown piece.

It may be desirable from the aesthetic standpoint to conceal portions of the cord loops 32 which pass across the crown pieces as in FIG. 11, or the knots 36- at the crown pieces as in FIG. 15, and this may be accomplished by covering the crown pieces with hollow caps 37, as shown in FIG. 14. Such caps may be screw-threaded on the end portions of the center post 29, as will be readily apparent.

The lengths of cord 32 or 32' which constitute the ribs in the embodiments of FIGS. 11 and 15 may or may not be elastic, that is, elastically stretchable. If they are not, then the adjustable spacing of the crown pieces 28 or 28a on the center post 29, as facilitated by the screw-threaded post with the nuts 31, will permit the crown pieces to be moved apart to the necessary extent for tensioning of the non-elastic cords and thereby prevent the same from sagging. The same adjustment facilities may also be used with elastic cords, although in this instance a tensioning adjustment may not be necessary if the cords are of such length as to be pre-stretched somewhat during their application to the crown pieces and are thus reasonably tensioned in the finished assembly. Under such circumstances the adjustable center post need not be provided and a non-adjustable, rigid center post may be used in the arrangement of FIGS. 11-15, in much the same manner as hereinafter described in connection with FIGS 16 and 17.

FIG. 16 illustrates another modification wherein the center post 38 of metal, plastic, or the like, is formed integrally with the crown pieces 39, 40' and with an intermediate spar 41 to accommodate ribs 41. In the instance illustrated, each of the ribs 41 consists of a length of so-called pop-beads 42, each having a projecting detent 43 snap-fittingly inserted in an aperture in the next adjacent bead, such pop-beads being readily available on the commercial market as childrens necklaces or bracelets. As will be apparent, the crown piece 39 is formed with apertures 43 in which the pop-bead projections 42 at one end of the ribs 41 may be fitted, while the crown piece 40 is equipped with detents 44 to fit into the pop-bead apertures at the other end of the ribs. The intermediate spar 41 again serves to engage intermediate portions of the ribs to produce a bulbous form.

Finally, FIG. 17 shows another modification which is quite similar to that in FIG. 16, but in place of employing the pop-bead ribs 41, FIG. 17 utilizes ribs consisting of ball-and-link type chain 45 of the readily available commercial form commonly used for grouping together a set of keys. Here, the balls 46 of the chain are connected together by the links 47, and the links at the ends of the ribs are ancored in slots or notches 48 of the crown pieces 49 on a center post 38.

The ribs 41 and 45 of the embodiments of FIGS. 16 and 17 may not require longitudinal tensioning, in which event the non-adjustable center post 38 or 38' may be quite satisfactory. However, if tensioning of the ribs is desirable, then an adjustable center post of the type shown in FIG. 11 may be utilized.

It may be noted that while the ornament structure has been described as being of a suspended type capable of being hung, as for example on a tree limb, the structure is adequately stable and self-sustaining so that instead of being suspended, it may be supported in an upstanding manner, as for example, on a suitable base. Also, while the invention places emphasis primarily on an ornament con struction utilizing a variety of selectively usable components, it is manifest that from the standpoint of the finished form, the ornament of a selected type may be made integrally, as by molding, for example, in instances where the appearance of the finished form is desired without an exercise of individual constructional procedures which the invention otherwise affords.

While in the foregoing there have been described and shown various preferred embodiments of the invention, other modifications may become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates. Thus, it is not desired to limit the invention to this disclosure, and vari ous modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is:

1. An ornament comprising a pair of axially spaced opposing crown pieces provided in their opposing portions with sockets, center post means extending axially between said crown pieces and maintaining the same at a predetermined maximum spacing, a plurality of circumferentially spaced elongated ribs of resiliently flexible material extending between the crown pieces and having their end portions removably inserted in said sockets, said ribs having a length greater than the predetermined maximum spacing of the crown pieces whereby the ribs are resiliently flexed into a longitudinally bowed form in the rib and crown piece assembly, and ornamental means provided on said ribs.

2. The device as defiined in claim 1 wherein said ribs comprise resilient wire rods and said ornamental means comprise apertured ornamental elements threaded on said rods.

3. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said crown pieces are hollow and have opposing end walls provided with circumferentially spaced opening defining said sockets for removable reception of the end portions of said ribs.

4. The device as defined in claim 3 wherein said hollow crown pieces are provided at the inside thereof with circumferentially spaced grooved aligned with said socket openings, said grooves forming seats for the end portions of said ribs and maintaining the ribs in circumferentially spaced radial planes.

5. The device as defined in claim 1 wherein said crown pieces are hollow and have open opposing ends provided with circumferentially spaced clips in which the end portions of said ribs are removably seated.

6. The device as defined in claim 5 wherein the end portions of said ribs are provided with cross-sectionally reduced regions which are seated in said clips.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,329,615 2/1920 Langfelder 16112 3,041,446 6/1962 Erlewine et al 240-10 5 3,263,355 8/1966 March 40-124 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,357,352 2/1964 France 1616 10 JACOB H. STEINBERG, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 161-16 

